PUBLICATIONS Inside Illinois Vol. 27, No. 15, March 6, 2008

Brief Notes

Shakespeare classics

Project views work in contemporary context

All the community’s a stage this spring as the UI theater department and other local thespians explore Shakespeare’s classic works in a contemporary context.

The drama – and comedy – began last month and continue through April with performers and speakers from the UI and throughout Champaign-Urbana introducing audiences to the best of the Bard at various venues. Those venues include the Krannert Center for the Performing Arts, McKinley Foundation, Parkland College Theater, Channing-Murray Foundation and Station Theater. University Laboratory High School students also are in on the act.

Taking the lead on the communitywide project is Tom Mitchell, interim head of the UI theater department. Mitchell has been working collaboratively with academic colleagues and community counterparts on a full-spectrum of Shakespearean experiences that he hopes will provide both seasoned Shakespeare enthusiasts and relative newcomers to the playwright with forums for exploring the many facets of producing, performing and enjoying the classic works.

“This focus on Shakespeare presents an opportunity to see the variety of theatrical experiences available in the community,” Mitchell said. “We’re lucky to have so much going on. We’ve got high school, college and community actors all performing in great plays.

“I’m looking forward to the fresh and irreverent approaches in some of the productions,” he said.

Krannert Center creative specialist Bridget Lee-Calfas said the center’s Promenade gift shop is even playing a small part in the festivities.

“Visitors will be able to indulge in all things Shakespeare by visiting the shop, where, among other Elizabethan novelties, they can find After Shakespeare Mints and William Shakespeare action figures,” she said. And at the almost weekly Krannert Uncorked, beginning at 5 p.m. x Thursdays, guests will be able to sample Shakespeare-inspired wine selections.

A full schedule of events and activities is online at www2.KrannertCenter.com/Shakespeare.

UI Extension

Moon Walk is April 4-June 27

Responding to a challenge to “race to the moon” by the city of Peoria, UI Extension Champaign County has announced its sponsorship of Moon Walk 2008, a 12-week race aimed to encourage people to walk more and reap the related health benefits.

To accomplish the mission to the moon, Extension is recruiting teams throughout Champaign County who will record their miles walked. Participants’ miles will be combined with all local moon-walkers. The race begins April 4 and ends June 27.

“We are always looking for fun ways to encourage people to be active. Moon Walk is just the right program because it involves a friendly competition between the city of Peoria and Champaign to see who can get to the moon first,” said Jamie Kleiss, UI Extension Health and Wellness Programs.

Moon Walk is based on research that shows in 30 minutes a day, five or more days a week you can help prevent, arrest and reverse major health issues such as obesity, heart disease, hypertension, Type II diabetes and depression.

Families, businesses, organizations and individuals are encouraged to participate. Registration is required.  Cost is $5 per participant, which includes a T-shirt after 100 miles walked and an invitation to the Moon Walk Launch Party on April 3 at Parkland College Planetarium. The first 100 people to register also will receive a pedometer.

To register or to learn more, call the UI Extension Champaign County office at 333-7672 or visit http://moonwalk.extension.uiuc.edu.

Illinois State Geological Survey

Open House is March 7-8

The Illinois State Geological Survey will host its 2008 Open House from 9 a.m.-4 p.m.  March 7 and 10 a.m.-2 p.m. March 8. The event will showcase the earth science research conducted by the survey scientists. There will be demonstrations and activities for all ages. The open house is at the Natural Resources Building. More information is at www.isgs.uiuc.edu.

American Association of University Professors

Promotion and tenure workshop

The Urbana chapter of the American Association of University Professors will sponsor a workshop March 11: “Achieving Tenure and Promotion – Policies and Procedures on the UIUC Campus.” The program will begin at 2:30 p.m. in 314B Illini Union.

Five panel members will make short presentations, lead the discussion and answer questions from the audience. This program is of particular interest to new and continuing tenure-track assistant professors and associate professors seeking promotion.

The panelists (and the topics they will address):  Provost Linda Katehi and Vice Provost Ruth Watkins (campus policies, three-year review procedures); Gary G. Porton, the Charles and Sarah Drobny Professor of Talmudic Studies and Judaism, and past chair of the Campus Promotion and Tenure Committee (procedures followed by the Promotion and Tenure Committee); Billie Jean Theide, professor of art and design, chair of the Faculty Advisory Committee (appeal procedures); and Cary Nelson, Jubilee Professor of Liberal Arts and Sciences and president of the National AAUP (position of and support provided by the AAUP).

Registration is not required; all faculty members are welcome. Refreshments will be served.  For more information, contact Harry H. Hilton, 333-2653, h-hilton@illinois.edu.

CITES security office

SSN removal deadline is March 14

March 14 is the deadline for unit heads to submit the data-collection forms and certificates to the security office in the Office of Chief Information Officer indicating that they have completed the Social Security Number elimination program for all computer systems for which they are responsible.

The SSN removal program and scanning tools identify sensitive personal data such as SSNs and credit-card numbers in computer files so the files can be eliminated to prevent accidental disclosure.

As part of the project, the Urbana campus has adopted standards that require all faculty and staff members with access to SSNs deploy the SSN scanning software annually, and that any laptop computers they use be registered in use of the software annually. Laptops containing sensitive data must be identified as such. Unit heads must sign off every year certifying that their unit has fulfilled the data-security requirements.

The security office is providing consultation and support during and after the SSN elimination project to assist units in securing systems that warrant retaining SSNs and in developing plans for the elimination of SSNs from other systems. The security office also will provide the chancellor’s and provost’s offices, as well as the university’s auditors, with a summary report on the status of each unit.

See www.cites.uiuc.edu/ssnprogram/ for more information, including deadlines and required forms.

Staff Human Resources

Town hall meetings, training announced

The Staff Human Resources is starting a contemporary performance-management system, the Performance Partnership Program, for employees represented by AFSCME Local 3700 and Open Range Civil Service employees. The start-up date for the program is April 1.

Several town hall meetings will be conducted for these employees to review features of the program and answer questions. These meetings are considered approved events.Employees may be released from work to attend without loss of pay, departmental operations permitting, and with appropriate supervisory approval.

In addition, for staff members who supervise these employees, mandatory training will demonstrate how the Performance Partnership Program will be administered and the tools that will be used.

Town hall meetings in the auditorium of the Beckman Institute: March 10, 10:30 a.m.-noon or 1-2:30 p.m.; March 18, 10:30 a.m.-noon.

Supervisor training in the Beckman Institute (room varies) will be from 9 a.m.-noon or 1:30-4:30 p.m. on March 11, 13, 14 and 20 and at 9 a.m. -noon on March 24.

The town hall meetings and supervisor training sessions require advance registration. For more information and to register, visit www.pso.uiuc.edu/Labor/PPP.html.

Intersection of biology and politics

Conference is first of its kind

Biology and politics may seem like strange bedfellows, especially in higher education, but for a growing number of social and natural scientists on college campuses across the country, the intersection of these disciplines offers intriguing potential for scholarly inquiry.

That intersection is the basis for an upcoming conference to be held March 7-8 at the UI’s Institute for Genomic Biology.

The conference is the first of its kind, said conference co-organizer Ira H. Carmen, a professor of political science who has devoted much of his research to the intersection of genetics and politics. “We will be exploring a new paradigm linking political science with genomic and neuroscientific research.”

The conference Web site is at www-app.igb.uiuc.edu/biopolitics. Registration is open and limited to 70 people. Organizers may be contacted at biopolitics@igb.uiuc.edu.

Gene E. Robinson, a professor of entomology, is the other conference organizer. Both he and Carmen are affiliated with the institute. Robinson’s area of expertise is the mechanisms of behavior in social insects. He directs the neuroscience program at Illinois and is the chair of the institute’s genomics of neural and behavioral plasticity theme.

Scholars from around the U.S. will discuss the biological antecedents of human social behavior, particularly political attitudes and behaviors, Carmen said.

The conference will offer panels on: “Genetics and Politics,” “Neuroscience and Politics,” “Cranial Responses to Out-Groups,” “Personality and Ideology: Evolutionary Implications” and “Biology and Sociality.”

The conference sponsors are the National Science Foundation, the IGB, the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, and the department of political science.

Illinois Program for Research in the Humanities

Photos reflect Cuban hip-hop scene

The Illinois Program for Research in the Humanities is hosting the exhibition, “Que Bola: Cuban Hip Hop in Motion,” by UI professor Marc D. Perry, through May 9.

The exhibition offers a series of photographic images that Perry shot in Havana in the summer of 2006, celebrating the vibrant energy and creative design of Cuba’s hip-hop movement. This is the first exhibition of photographs by Perry, a professor of African-American studies and of anthropology and a 2007-08 IPRH Faculty Fellow.

The images provide a compelling view of the intensity of the performer and audience in the making of hip hop in Cuba and are part of his current book project, “Revolutionizing Blackness: Hip Hop in Late Socialist Cuba.”

“The project centers on the ways young Afro-Cuban men and women are using hip-hop culture to fashion new expressions of black Cuban identity and accompanying anti-racist critique,” Perry said.

The exhibition is free and open to the public. For more information, call 224-3344 or visit www.iprh.uiuc.edu.

Family Resiliency Center

Family wellness series announced

The Family Resiliency Center is offering a Family Wellness Series this semester. The series focuses on the six dimensions of wellness (physical, intellectual, spiritual, emotional, social and environmental) and will offer a research and an applied perspective on a particular topic within one of the dimensions.

The series is free and open to the public. Each session is from 4-5 p.m. in the studio of Doris Kelley Christopher Hall. More programs for other dimensions of wellness will be featured next semester.

Events:

March 11 (social): “The Benefits of Volunteerism,” Beth Welbus, senior coordinator of research, UI Center for Prevention Research and Development, and Lynn Peisker, Volunteer Connections coordinator, United Way of Champaign County.

April 1 (environmental): “A Dose of Nature: Everyday Contact With Nature and the Impact on Wellness,” William Sullivan,  professor of landscape architecture and director of the UI Environmental Council, and Judy Miller, environmental program manager, Anita Purves Nature Center, Urbana Park District.

April 29 (physical): “Successful Aging and the Brain,” Art Kramer, professor of psychology, Campus Neuroscience Program, Institute of Aviation, and the Beckman Institute, and Laura Payne, Extension Specialist, UI department of recreation, sport and tourism.

For more information, contact Brenda Koester at 244-6486 or bkoester@illinois.edu.

Child Development Laboratory

Apply now for academic year 2008-09

The Child Development Laboratory is accepting applications for the 2008-2009 school year. Half-day preschool programs for 2-, 3- and 4-year-old children will be Tuesday through Friday for three hours a day during the regular academic year. Full-day child-care programs for children from 6 weeks to 4 years are in session from 7:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday year-round.

Orientation tours of both facilities are offered weekly. Hour-long tours depart from the lobby of the Early Child Development Lab facility at 3:30 p.m. on Wednesdays and 9:30 a.m. on Thursdays. Use the Lincoln Avenue entrance off of the Jimmy John’s parking lot. Tours are suspended during the enrollment months of April and May.

To complete an online enrollment application, visit www.cdl.uiuc.edu. For more information or to schedule a tour, call 244-8622. For full consideration, submit applications for half-day programs by April 1 and full-day programs by May 1. 

Civil Service Employees

Apply by April 4 for scholarships

Applications for civil service employee and dependent scholarships are available online through the Staff Human Resources home page at www.pso.uiuc.edu. Printed copies may be obtained from civil service representatives Barney Bryson, Gary Fry or Jeff Goldberg. The application deadline is April 4.

Typically, recipients are selected the second week in May and honored at an award ceremony in mid-June. Last year scholarships were awarded to two employees and four dependents of employees. The committee tries to award about eight scholarships each year to qualified people pursuing degrees of higher education at an accredited college or university.

College of Engineering

Starting a business through research

The College of Engineering will host a presentation that will explore questions to consider when deciding whether to start a company. John Rogers, UI professor of electrical and computer engineering, will discuss “Spinning Out a Company From Your Research” at 4 p.m. March 12 in Room 190 of the Engineering Sciences Building.

The talk will explore Rogers’ experiences as a faculty member starting a company, Semprius Inc. After the talk, Rogers will be joined by patent lawyer Stephen Barone, Illinois-VENTURES’ senior director John Regan, UI Research Park manager Scott Pickard, and senior technology manager Mark Kaczor for a discussion to answer audience questions. To register, e-mail nnair@illinois.edu by March 7.

School of Social Work

Continuing education event is March 28

The UI School of Social Work and the School of Social Work Alumni Association will present the Spring 2008 Continuing Education Event on March 28 at the Hawthorn Suites Hotel and Conference Center, 101 Trade Centre Drive, Champaign.

This year’s workshop schedule offers four sessions. Each session has been approved for three hours of continuing-education credit. Seating is limited, so register early.

For a brochure, call 244-5241 or e-mail ambeck@illinois.edu. The cost for the full day is $135 ($120 if registered by March 18)/$15 for students. The cost for a half-day is: $80 ($65 if registered by March 18)/$10 for students.

The sessions:

•  “Bridging the Chasm: How Social Workers Can Help Immigrant Families,” 9 a.m.-12:15 p.m.

•  “Response to Intervention: Implementing Effective Tier II Interventions,” 9 a.m.-12:15 p.m.

•  “From Subpoena to Trial: Courtroom Preparation for Social Workers,” 1:30 p.m.-4:45 p.m.

•  “Parenting and Severe Mental Illness,” 1:30 p.m.- 4:45 p.m.

Asian American Awareness Month

Cultural center hosts activities

Activities during Asian American Awareness Month center on the theme, “We are Here … This is Our Voice.”

The celebration begins with an exhibition: “Asian American Art Show: ‘Reflections of Who I Am…’ ” at the Asian American Cultural Center, Monday-Friday, 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. On display through April, the exhibit also will be featured at an art reception from 2-4 p.m. April 20 during the Boneyard Arts Festival.

Events continue with the Asian American Studies Program’s Asian American conferences:

March 7-8: “Philippine Palimpsests” will examine the Filipino Diaspora with respect to past and present.

March 28-29: “Korean Education Exodus” will focus on the changing Korean America with the arrival of new immigrants.

April 15-16: “Southeast Asians in the Diaspora” will explore the identity of Southeast Asian Americans as a result of their specific histories.

For information about activities, go to the Asian American Cultural Center Web site, www.odos.uiuc.edu/aacc/, or contact May Xiong, 333-9300 or aacc@illinois.edu.

Windsor Lecture

Abbot speaks on library research

Andrew Abbott, the Gustavus F. and Ann M. Swift Distinguished Service Professor in the department of sociology at the University of Chicago, will give the Spring 2008 Windsor Lecture at the Graduate School of Library and Information Science at 4 p.m. March 12. During his talk, “Library Research and Its Infrastructure in the 20th Century,” Abbott will discuss the co-evolution over the 20th century of the library research community and the libraries in which that community worked.

Known for his ecological theories of occupations, Abbott also has pioneered algorithmic analysis of social sequence data. He has written on the foundations of social science methodology and on the evolution of the social sciences and the academic system.

A reception will follow the lecture.

University YMCA

International dinner is March 9

The University YMCA, Cosmopolitan Club and International Student and Scholar Services will host the 25th Annual International Dinner and Performance Night at 6 p.m. March 9 at the University YMCA. Tickets are $8 for a sampling of food and music from all over the world.

Tickets can be purchased at the University YMCA. Seats are limited.

Families, international students and faculty members come together for an evening of food from more than 30 countries and a variety of live entertainment.

Historic urban environment

Heritage Cities Workshop is March 7--8

Scholars will talk about cities in Bolivia, China, Cuba, Eastern Europe, Egypt, North Africa, Peru and the U.S. during the Heritage Cities workshop March 7-8.

Heritage Cities considers the historic urban environment both with respect to problems – such as authenticity and the preservation of something that is inherently unstable and dynamic – and possibilities – such as revival and revitalization. The preservation of cultural heritage is typically regarded as a common good, but heritage also is intertwined with identity and territory, where individuals and communities may compete. This aspect of heritage is particularly problematic in cities across the globe that are marketed as heritage cities. Multiple claims from diverse inhabitants are inevitable and more than one of these may claim the right to interpret or possess an individual site or building. Does the historic urban fabric belong to the current or past residents?

The workshop is 9:30 a.m.-6 p.m. March 7 in Doris Kelley Christopher Hall and 9 a.m.-noon March 8 at Illinois Project for Research in the Humanities. The workshop is free and open to the public and lunch is provided on March 7 with reservation. Visit www.champ.uiuc.edu for program details. Contact slirish@illinois.edu to register.

The workshop is organized by the Collaborative for Cultural Heritage and Museum Practices.

Handel’s ‘Solomon’

BACH to perform March 15

The Baroque Artists of Champaign-Urbana will present Handel’s oratorio “Solomon” at 7:30 p.m. March 15 at Smith Memorial Hall.

UI professor Chester Alwes Jr. will conduct the orchestra, chorus and soloists, including countertenor Jay Carter (as Solomon) and sopranos Sherezade Panthaki, Meagan Smith and Leann Schuering.

Tickets prices are $18 for general admission, $15 for senior citizens, and $10 for students (for students only: Buy one, get one free). Tickets are available at the door, from the BACH office (378-6802), at Techline (24 E. Green St., Champaign) or at www.baroqueartists.org.

Lincoln Bicentennial Lecture

Civil War historian will speak March 12

James M. McPherson, widely regarded as the greatest living historian of the U.S. Civil War, will deliver the Lincoln Bicentennial Lecture at the UI on March 12.

His lecture, “Tried by War: Abraham Lincoln as Commander-in-Chief,” will begin at 3:30 p.m. in the auditorium of the Alice Campbell Alumni Center.

The talk is sponsored by the history department and is free and open to the public. The event inaugurates the history department’s yearlong celebration of the Lincoln bicentennial, which will include a series of distinguished speakers, specialized undergraduate courses and outreach workshops for area teachers.

McPherson is the George Henry Davis 1886 Professor Emeritus of American History at Princeton University.

University Library

Spring book sale March 10-14

The University Library’s Book Nook is planning a half-price book sale from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. March 10-14. Paperbacks will cost $1 to $1.50 and most hard-cover books will cost $2. The Book Nook is located at the welcome desk on the first floor of the library in the bronze tablet hallway.

Back to Index